Hardly any rain, too many hot days: the ground in the federal capital is bone dry. Despite the ongoing drought and the smoking ban, the Vienna continues to throw away their cigarettes. A forest expert warns – also about terrible punishments.
“It’s crazy!” With drastic words, the Viennese forest director Andreas Januskovecz comments on photos and videos that the initiator of the “Tschick Challenge” Irene Holloway took last weekend in the Vienna Woods and sent to the “Krone”. The ground in the federal capital is bone dry, the earth seeping through your fingers.
618 cigarettes during a forest walk
And yet: the Viennese woman collected 618 cigarette butts – most of them fresh – during a walk in the Wienerwald, on the Heuberg, the Kreuzzeichenwiese and on the Wilhelminenberg. Incidentally, 50 liters of waste – such as damp cloths, dog poop bags and bottles – ended up in their pockets.
The funny thing, as the ranger knows: smoking is prohibited. Due to the drought, regulations are in force in both Vienna and Lower Austria. According to Januskovecz, the Vienna Regulation states that “open fires and embers – including cigarettes – are prohibited in the forest and in the forest’s sphere of influence”. That also means forest edges.
“You can cause terrible disasters”
There have been no forest or field fires in Vienna this year. Yet because – like last year on Schneeberg (Lower Austria) – it can go extremely fast when it is so dry. “I can only appeal to the brain and common sense. Wrong behavior can cause terrible catastrophes,” says Januskovecz. And collect terrible fines: you pay up to 7,000 euros if you are caught smoking. It could be hundreds of thousands if there is a forest fire.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
